2011 Ford Mustang GT

Return of the legendary 5.0, now with 412 horsepower—and better mileage.

From the outside, the changes to the are modest, with minor headlamp and grille spiffs that would make a great "what's the difference?" bar bet at anything other than a Mustang Club meeting.

Except for one item: the 5.0 badge.

What does it mean? For the first time since 1995, the Mustang has a 5.0-liter engine...take me back to the Boss 302.

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Yet this time the 5.0-liter V-8 has horsepower that would have embarrassed legions of former Mustang Cobras, with 412 bhp and 390 lb.-ft. of torque. And it's channeled through a 6-speed transmission, manual or automatic.

Look at the tach; there's a redline of 7000 rpm, so it's no problem to guess this is a 5.0-liter version of dohc V-8, now with independent variable cam timing for the four valves in each cylinder.

But here's the odd thing that points us to the future and upcoming fuel mileage standards: There's no mention of 0–60 times in Ford's material, but plenty of talk of fuel mileage.

Now we've told the fuel mileage story, here's the fun part: 0–60 mph times in the mid-4-second range. The all-aluminum V-8 keeps the Mustang from feeling nose heavy when driven hard, able to dance nicely along the twisty, scree-strewn canyon roads on which we tested it. The new Electric Power Assist Steering, which offers light parking efforts, has less assist at speed and good feedback, though we think it could be a touch heavier overall.

The new 6-speed manual feels right for the power of the V-8, with nice clutch take-up. Of course there's enough torque and that 7000-rpm redline, so you can hum along those tight roads in, say, 3rd gear and rarely need to shift. When you nail the gas, there's a wonderful, classic V-8 sound that seems to growl from directly under your right foot.

We did our V-8 driving in the convertible version, which brings with it a premium of $5000, but reasonable traffic noise suppression when the top is up, you East Coasters. The inside finish of the top is rather good for a car in this price class, though its cover is a touch Mickey Mouse.

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Mustang GT prices start at $29,645.

Not surprisingly, Ford has done a racing version of the new 5.0 and calls it the Boss 302R. This is aimed straight at the Grand-Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge series where it runs against and . This could well be the reincarnation of the classic Trans-Am series...check it out if you can. It's great racing.

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